


I Remember?

by ivnwrites



Category: Assassin's Creed, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: "I see dead people", Angst, Assassin's Creed AU, Ben is Desmond|Rey is Lucy|Finn is Rebecca|Poe is Shaun, Bleeding Effect, Irish Republican Army, M/M, character death is non-explicit, kyluxsoftkinks, never let me start talking about science and the history of humanity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-19
Updated: 2016-12-19
Packaged: 2018-09-09 18:55:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8908096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ivnwrites/pseuds/ivnwrites
Summary: Ben is part of a team sent to Ireland to review the memories of Kylo Ren, a member of the Old IRA, but the difference between past and present becomes blurred when one forms attachments to people who are long dead.





	

**Author's Note:**

> A warning: Ben's fate is left ambiguous, but the reader could interpret his final actions as leading to suicide. When I wrote this fic, my intention was to show that Ben was considering killing himself, but in my head he ultimately does not go through with it.
> 
> An inexact fill for this prompt on kyluxsoftkinks:
> 
> Assassins Creed Au: Hux is a programmer at Abstergo and high-ranking Knight Templar. He's also falling in love with Assassin-turned-Knight Kylo Ren. The problem with this is that, like everyone you meet in the Animus, Kylo has been DEAD for several hundred years... (Non-angsty option: "Kylo Ren" is actually Assassin hacker Ben Solo, currently under cover at Abstergo as Matt the Animus Technician.)
> 
> Did someone say Assassin’s Creed and the Irish Republican Army! *they only said the first one* Silence! I switched the roles, I hope the original asker doesn’t mind)

“They’re going to rebuild it in a week.”

Kylo sighed, rolling his eyes at the sour expression on Hux’s face. “Yes, but that’s a whole week when their supply lines are going to be inactive.” He nudged Hux, trying to pry a smile out of the redhead. “Come on, come on.”

He eventually cracked after the fifth or sixth nudge and a grin crept onto his face. “Any one we walk away from, eh?”

Kylo slung an arm around Hux’s shoulders. “That’s the spirit.”

Hux let himself be rocked back and forth for a few moments before pushing Kylo away, his face falling. “But what’s the point? We blow up a few rail lines, drive them out of a town for one day, but then they’re back, with more men, more guns. We just keep making things harder for ourselves.” He stared down at the wood surface of the bar, ignoring the hubbub swirling around him and Kylo. “What are we even doing here, Ren?”

“We’re building a free Ireland, one we want our children to live in.”

“Right.” Hux nodded solemnly. “You’re going to have to remind me of that.”

Kylo leaned over and rested his head on Hux’s shoulder, turning to nuzzle against his neck with a grin. “How abo-”

“Ben, I need to pull you out now.”

Ben groaned at the sound of Finn’s voice as the scene around him froze for an instant before shattering into the Animus’ white loading plane. “Just give me a little while longer.”

“You’re ten minutes over already, and this was an extended session. Orders are orders.” When Ben opened his eyes he was staring up at Finn’s chest as he powered down the Animus attached EEG headset and pulled the chair into a sitting position. “You’re going to want to stay put for a while until you get oriented. I was supposed to power down after you all got the charges set, but I wanted you to see what happened.” He admitted with a grin.

Ben settled back into the Animus chair, a slight feeling of dizziness washing over him. “You know Poe would’ve just told me about it anyway when he got back.”

Finn smiled. “Yeah, but there’s a certain immediacy in the animus. It’s exciting seeing things happen right before your eyes.”

“I thought you hadn’t used the Animus before…” Ben trailed off as a flash of dull red caught his eye before it faded into nothing. He stared into the corner of the room, watching intently in the hope that it wasn’t truly empty.

“I haven’t used this version of it.” Finn explained, rolling his chair over from the bank of monitors he used to keep track of the Animus. “I was part of the tests for our previous model, we were seeing how far back we could go.”

“What did you see?”

“We knew I had some roots in Mesopotamia, so we started with early Babylonia, the Amorite dynasty and such. From there we got to the Akkadians, the Assyrians, all the way back to ancient Sumeria. That’s where I learned cuneiform.”

Ben rolled his eyes. “You say it so casually.”

Finn gave him a look of mock surprise. “What, you don’t spend your friday nights reliving the dawn of civilization?”

Ben scoffed good-naturedly. “No, so how far back can this thing go?”

“Theoretically? To the very beginning, it all depends on which sequence you pick.” Finn’s face lit up. “With me we were able to go all the way back to the end of global pre-history. We used that as a benchmark and managed to repeat the process with ten other volunteers.

“We considered going further back into the Neolithic era, but decided against it. The first people we send back that far have to be linguists, archaeologists, people who will have at lest some idea what they’re dealing with, or else we won’t be able to understand anything, but just think of what we could learn! If we can go all the way back to mitochondrial eve the number of questions that could be answered is endless.

“If we found the right person, we could get the memories of neanderthals and other species of homo-erectus, because we have firm evidence that there was some cross breeding, which is why some populations have neanderthal DNA. NOVA had an episode where they explained that the reason homo-sapiens became the dominant species because we out-bred the others.”

Ben let his eyelids slide closed, and listened absently as Finn continued to talk about the development of humans as a species. He’d heard the speech before, but talking about it seemed to make Finn happy. As he began to drift off, Ben felt a familiar set of fingertips brush over his forehead and down his cheek.

He woke up and saw Hux leaning over him with an amused look on his face. “Good morning sleepyhead.”

Ben smiled up at him before glancing at the windows in the corner of the room. The light streaming into the room made it look like it had been caught in amber. He looked up at Hux, ignoring the way the light shone directly through the redhead without interruption. “It’s not morning.”

“No, it’s not.” They turned to see Poe walking into the room with a camera slung around his neck. “I went to one of the local pubs ‘cause I heard that they held onto some of the fragments from the railroad you all blew up. Wanna see?”

He nodded but was distracted when he heard Hux laugh. “Jeez, You all saw that?” He grimaced and shook his head. “Not my best work. The charges went off too early, Ren barely got out of there in time.”

Ben shrugged, pulling himself upright in the Animus chair. “It was fine, we’ve gotten out of tighter situations.”

Hux pursed his lips. “Not after that, we didn’t.”

“Ben?” Poe had a concerned look on his face. “Who are you talking to?”

“Hux…oh.” Ben trailed off. He looked away from Poe and only found empty air where Hux had been standing a moment before. He sighed and rested his forehead against his palms. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” Poe laid a hand on his shoulder, standing in silence for a moment. “Do you want to see the pictures?” He sat down when Ben nodded, using a USB to link the camera to his phone and flipping through the images one by one. “You should really go there, they have a bunch of stuff from the Old IRA.”

00000000

Ben gazed out the car window as they pulled up in front of an older building. After a few days of pestering he’d agreed to let Poe drag him to the pub he’d been researching. “It’s closed today, sunday and all, but the owner lent me a spare key when I told ‘em I was doing some research.” Poe nudged Ben when he made no move to get out of the car. “Come on.”

He followed reluctantly a few yards behind Poe, feeling his stomach clench as he stepped over the threshold. The interior had been redone over the years but the structure was still the same. Ben found his attention pulled to a picture on the wall behind the bar. He reached out and lifted it off its hook, setting it on the bar and staring intently at the faces of the two men. “Poe? did you see this?”

He ran a fingertip over the photo before distantly felt Poe peek around his shoulder. “So that’s them. You know, I half expected Kylo to look exactly like you.” Hux gazed resolutely out of the photograph, his back ramrod straight and his hands folded in front of his vest. Kylo, on the other hand, had one arm tucked behind Hux, the fingers of which were visible at the redhead’s waist, while the other hung limply at his side. He was turned toward Hux, glancing over as if he had only just noticed the camera. “May I?” He turned the frame over to find a date etched into the back. “September 1920? They must have taken this right before the raid.”

“Kylo!” He looked up and saw Hux beckoning him from across the pub. “Come here!” Kylo set down his coffee and made his way between the empty tables to stand near Hux.

Kylo wrapped his arms around Hux’s waist and rested his forehead on Hux’s shoulder. “What are we doing here, darlin’? It’s almost dawn.”

“The reconnaissance team will be back soon, then we can go to sleep.” Hux chuckled and pointed to the camera that Kylo had ignored. “But in the meantime, we’re taking a photograph.”

Kylo glanced over to see one of their men waiting near the small box resting on top of a tripod. He looked back to Hux. “Are you sure that’s wise? If I get caught you don’t want to have evidence that we were connected.”

“They’ll be looking for me no matter what happens.” Hux fixed Kylo with a skeptical look before breaking into a smile. “Now, I’ve done all the work to borrow a camera and find one of our men who knew how to operate it, so you are going to stand still for the camera.”

“Besides sir,” Their man piped up as he opened the camera. “You always say we’re doing this for future generations, now they’ll get a chance to see what you two actually looked like.”

Hux raised an eyebrow. “See?” They had to stand still for longer than Kylo liked and he grumbled until the picture was taken. He yanked Hux toward him and closed his eyes, resting his head against Hux’s shoulder. Hux rolled his eyes, but nevertheless slung his arms around Kylo’s waist. “When will we get the photo back?”

“I’ll send the film out on monday, it should take about a week after that for it to be developed and-”

“It’s a raid!” The door to the pub slammed open and another member of their cell stumbled in, repeating the message as he ran up the stairs to the back. A few other men who had been dozing by the bar sprang up and sprinted out of the main room, glancing at Kylo and Hux before they left.

Kylo turned to Hux, and grabbed him by the shoulders, starting to drag him toward the back of the pub. “You need to get out of here!”

Hux shook his head and calmly disentangled himself from Kylo’s grip. “I’m going to stall them so everyone else can get out, leave through the back door. Go straight into the woods and get a headcount, don’t come back here for at least a full day.”

“No!”

“Ren this isn’t the time for theatrics!”

They were interrupted when a group of soldiers burst into the room, forcing them to kneel on the floor with their hands above their heads. “Alright boys,” Hux rose to his feet after a few moments, opening his hands in a placating gesture. “Your first objective is always to find the leader, well here I am. Now, let’s let the others go quietly.” He took a step forward, stopping short when his leg was yanked back. He looked down and saw Kylo’s hand wrapped around his ankle. “Kylo, not now, please.”

Ben watched solemnly as Hux was led out of the pub, the figures turning to shadows and melting through the door. He turned and saw Kylo kneeling on the floor, staring at the door with a look of despair. “Immediately before.” Ben murmured, handing the photograph to Poe and making his way across the pub to stand beside Kylo, the shadowy figure was still there, frozen in position.

“To tell the truth, this was better than him flying into a rage.” Hux had appeared at his side and knelt down to get a better look at Kylo’s face. “I’m sorry Ren.”

Ben looked up and saw Poe watching him with a concerned expression. “You were just standing there, what did you see?”

“They took the photo, and then he was gone.”

“Hux? They took him?” Ben nodded numbly, eyes still fixed on the floor even though Kylo had disappeared. He only moved when Poe’s hand landed on his shoulder, steering him toward the exit. “Let’s get back to the base.”

00000000

Ben stalked into the kitchen, slumping down in one of the chair set in front of the island. “I don’t want to go through the last sequence today.”

“Why not?” Finn asked, his eyes flitting over the screen of his laptop.

Ben shrugged, using his finger to trace patterns on the table top.

“Well, it’s not your choice.” Ben glared at Rey as she strode into the kitchen, brushing a hand over Finn’s shoulders a she did. “We’ve been through the previous sequences nearly five times already. We need to finish up with Kylo’s memories and move on.” Bun grumbled unintelligibly and slumped further, shooting Rey an angry look as he did. She sat in front of him with a sigh, setting a cup of coffee down on the table in front of her. “You’re spending too much time in the Animus, it’s beginning to cause irreversible damage.”

Ben scowled, folding his arms and leaning back in his chair to balance on the back two legs. “I’m fine.”

“Ben, do you have any idea how frequently you’re bleeding? You spend half the day talking to Hux, and you don’t try to do anything to stop it. If this goes on, you not going to be able to distinguish memory from reality.”

He shifted and let the legs of the chair bang down onto the floor, placing his palms flat against the tabletop. “Maybe I don’t want to live in reality anymore.”

Rey let out a growl of frustration. She picked up her mug, only to slam it down on the table, sending coffee spilling across the smooth surface. She ignored Finn’s startled yelp as he yanked his laptop out of the way. “Stop being so selfish! This mission is about so much more than just you! We already have most of the information we need, but we have to finish the sequences to be sure we don’t miss anything.” She stood up, pushing her chair back from the table. “You have thirty minutes, then we’re going through the execution memories. That’s an order. I’ve let you put this off long enough.”

She stormed out of the room, leaving Finn to glance back and forth between her retreating back and Ben, who was sitting at the island silently as if frozen in place. His eyes eventually fell to the coffee spreading across the surface. He retrieved a rag and began to mop up the liquid. He finished and looked back at Ben to see the man still hadn’t moved. “I’ll get the Animus booted up.” Finn nodded to himself and walked out of the room, leaving Ben alone to stare at the tabletop.

“You knew this had to happen eventually” Hux leaned against the island nonchalantly, resting his temple against his knuckles. Ben laced his fingers together and rested his head atop them, finding it easier to stare at the wooden table than to see the redhead. Hux reached out and trailed a hand over the nape of Ben’s neck, his eyes softening. “You know what happened, is it really so hard to finally see it?”

Ben nodded and turned his head to peer up at Hux. “I don’t want to watch you die.”

Hux sighed and shook his head. “Neither did he.”

00000000

“Sign the oath, Hux.”

“And declare my loyalty to the king of England? Not on your life.”

“Hux just sign the damn papers!” Kylo slammed his palms down on the table, making Hux flinch back in his seat. He let out a shuddering breath and dropped his head, squeezing his hands into fists.

Hux waited a few moments until he heard Kylo’s breaths even out. He reached across the table, the chain between his handcuff clinking as he clasped one of Kylo’s hands. “I’m sorry.”

“Bullshit.” Kylo shoved Hux’s hands away, wrapping his arms around his ribs and turning away in a childish show of defiance.

“I love you.” Kylo shook his head and Hux tilted in an attempt to catch his eye. “Kylo, please. I know you understand why I have to do this.” He extended his hand, palm upward, toward Kylo. After a long stretch of silence Kylo lurched forward, placing his head on the table and allowing Hux to card his fingers gently through his hair.

“You know, I never worried for you, when we were at war.” Kylo mumbled.

“Why not?”

“Because I was there. I could protect you.” He shifted and craned his neck to peer at Hux across the table. “I’ve laid down my life for you, Hux, but now I can’t save you.”

A sad smile tugged at the corners of Hux’s mouth. “It’s my turn to save you.” They sat in silence for a few minutes, his nails scraping gently over Kylo’s scalp. “You’ll be there tomorrow, right? 10 am sharp?”

Kylo shook his head, pressing his face to Hux’s sleeve. “Don’t make me go, please. I don’t want to watch you die.” Hux could feel wetness seep through the fabric of his shirt.

“I know, but I want your face to be the last thing I see.”

“Let me follow you,” Kylo hissed, picking his head up from the table and dragging Hux forward. “and we’ll see each other again.”

Hux shook his head. “No Kylo, you need to stay.”

“I don’t want to!”

“25 years.” The statement made Kylo stop short. “Give me 25 years, have children, and build a free Ireland for them to live in. Our story needs someone to tell it, Kylo, and right now it has to be you.”

"Hux, I don't think I can do that." 

"You can. Now promise me."

Kylo took a deep breath and nodded, tears rolling freely over his cheeks. “I promise.”

Hux smiled. “Thank you. Come here.” He stood up when Kylo stepped around the table and placed his hands on either side of the taller man’s face. He used his fingertips to wipe away the tears with a sad but resolved smile. “I love you, and I will miss you.” He stepped forward and pressed their lips together, lingering there long enough for Kylo to commit it to memory before pulling away. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Get me out of here!”

Ben yanked off the Animus headset as soon as it was safe and bolted from the room, locking himself into the bedroom he had claimed. He screamed at Finn when he knocked at the door, ignoring Hux when he encouraged him to talk to the Animus tech.

00000000

The team kept a small vial containing five cyanide pills in the back of their first aid kit, as per protocol. In the early hours of the morning, with hours of hard darkness still left, Ben had slipped it into his coat pocket and snuck out of their base. The others slept unawares behind him, curled securely under the multiple blankets they used to keep out the chill. He plugged an address into his phone and drove in accordance with the directions until he found himself in the yard of the old prison.

Ben pulled himself out of the car and walked slowly toward the three wooden poles which stood rotting, but still firmly embedded in the ground. The yard was nearly empty save for the line of five officers who stood with their rifles at the ready and their commander. He drifted to away from them, and found himself standing next to a familiar figure dressed in an outdated suit. “Kylo?”

The man turned at the sound of his voice, eyes wet with tears. “Ben?” Ben nodded and Kylo held out his hand. Ben clasped it tightly and stepped closer, their shoulders bumping together, only for Kylo to let go and wrap his arm over Ben's shoulder. A whistle sounded and they watched as Hux was led into the yard by another guard who pushed him to stand against the wooden pole, his eyes turned skyward to gaze at what had been a cloudless cerulean blue.

His wrists were fastened together behind him so that his arms wrapped around the pole in a sort of backwards embrace. Hux let his head fall back against the wood to the side as the guard walked away, leaving him alone in the center of the yard. He opened his eyes when the officers shouldered their rifles, his gaze finding Ben and Kylo immediately. He looked at them each in turn, and smiled.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going to say that this is a super advanced form of the bleeding effect where the sufferer has associated themselves do much with their ancestral memories that they start to reinterpret them into original hallucinations. Yeah.
> 
> The transitions between Ben bleeding the past and what's actually happening might feel jarring, and they were meant to. Please feel free to comment and tell me what you think.


End file.
